Industry News

Microsemi Corp., a leading provider of semiconductor solutions differentiated by power, security, reliability and performance, and Zarlink Semiconductor Inc. announced that 0916753 B.C. ULC, an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Microsemi, has accepted the tender of and is acquiring 123,438,737 Zarlink shares, representing approximately 96 percent of Zarlink's outstanding shares, and CAD $54,417,000. With the success of this tender, Microsemi takes control of Zarlink's board and operations.

AMETEK Inc., a manufacturer of electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) test equipment, has acquired the parent company of EM Test (Switzerland) GmbH, a privately held manufacturer of electronic test and measurement equipment headquartered in Reinach, Switzerland, for $93 M.

ITT Corp. of White Plains, NY, completed the previously announced spin-offs of its Defense and Information Solutions business and its Water Technology and Services business. With the spin-offs complete, ITT is now a $2 B company with four businesses that deliver highly engineered and customized products and services to the industrial, aerospace, transportation, and oil and gas industries.

AWR Corp. and Magus (Pty) Ltd., developers of the Antenna Magus expert system for antenna synthesis, announced a joint marketing relationship focused on accelerating the pace of antenna design for wireless-enabled products. The first result of this relationship is AWR Connected™ for Antenna Magus, an interface between the respective firms' software products that expedites antenna design from synthesis with Antenna Magus to full circuit/EM simulation with AWR's Microwave Office™ and AXIEM® software tools. Antenna Magus provides a database of many different highly characterized antenna types that can be exported to AWR's EDA tools for EM analysis, integration, tuning and optimization.

AMCAD Engineering and Maury Microwave, working together under the exclusive development and distribution agreement they signed in June of 2010, announced in October of this year, the release of a new pulser (probe head) tailored for small-periphery transistor (HBTs and HEMT) pulsed IV measurements. This new pulser, AM223, has two embedded measurement units: one for currents lower than 20 mA, one for currents between 20 and 200 mA. This and other features of the new pulser allow for the most accurate characterization of HBTs to date. This new pulser is one of many products being jointly developed by Maury and AMCAD, following their successful launch in 2010 of Maury's IVCAD advanced device characterization software suite, which was the first collaboration between Maury and AMCAD.

TBM Consulting Group, the global business improvement leader for the manufacturing and service sectors, presented the Tukwila plant of Carlisle Interconnect Technologies (CarlisleIT) with the 2011 "Perfect Engine" Site Award recognizing the organization for its commitment to a continuous improvement philosophy and its success using operational excellence to drive value creation. The Tukwila plant has also been chosen as one of 16 finalists in IndustryWeek's 2011 Best Plants Competition.

DITF Interconnect Technologies of Minden, NV, was one of 39 companies presented with a supplier excellence award from Raytheon Co. in September. The awards are for exceptional performance in supporting the company's Space and Airborne Systems (SAS) business during 2011. They were chosen for meeting demanding standards in the areas of quality and delivery performance, customer satisfaction, and total business and financial health. Awards were presented at the 3- and 4-Star level, and DITF received a 3-Star award.

Special Hermetic Products Inc. (SHP) announced certification to ISO 9001:2008. In business since 1988, SHP is a leader in the design and manufacture of hermetically sealed feedthrus, connectors, headers, assemblies, custom design solutions and related products and services for military, aerospace and commercial applications.

Contracts

KOR Electronics announced that it has been awarded international contracts for simulator products valued in excess of $13.4 M. They include new development contracts for advanced AESA Radar, missile, and Electronic Countermeasure (ECM) simulator systems. These simulators are equipped with the latest KOR Electronics 10/12 Bit 1 GHz Digital Radio Frequency Memories (DRFM).

Crane Aerospace & Electronics Power Solutions was selected by Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. to supply its Transformer Rectifier Units (TRU) on the Gulfstream G650. The five 250A TRUs on each G650 provide DC bus power throughout the aircraft.

Personnel

RF Micro Devices Inc. announced the appointment of technology veteran Hans Schwarz, 54, as Corporate Vice President, business development. In this newly created position, Schwarz will be responsible for corporate business development initiatives, including strategic planning, M&A strategy and execution, and IP-based acquisition and licensing for RFMD®. Schwarz will be based in RFMD's West Coast office, in CA's Silicon Valley.

AR RF/Microwave Instrumentation has announced the appointment of Carl Mueller to the position of Applications Engineer for the company's EMI Receiver, Conducted Immunity Systems, and test software. Mueller will provide customer support and will also be involved in system development. Mueller has worked as Principal System Engineer on radar warning receivers, communication jamming systems, and aircraft simulated training systems.

Rep Appointments

Giga-tronics Inc. announced the appointment of GiGaProM, as a new sales representative for Russia and the Russian Federation, to cover its growing business in RF and microwave test and measurement equipment. GiGaProM (www.gigaprom.ru) represents a number of leading test and measurement companies in Russia. GiGaProM can be contacted at 7-495-661-67-07 or info@gigaprom.ru.

Pulse Electronics Corp., a leading provider of electronic components, has selected Microtarget Tecnologia Digital Ltd. to provide sales, engineering, design support, parts, training, and service for its customers in Brazil and South America. Microtarget will represent Pulse Electronics' antennas, connectors, Excelsus filters, and electronic components for the telecom, LAN, power, RF and wireless, and automotive industries.

Reactel Inc., a manufacturer of RF and microwave filters, multiplexers, and multifunction assemblies to the commercial, military, and industrial markets, announced the appointment of Eastern Instrumentation / EI Technology as the company's representative in MD, VA, Washington, DC, eastern PA and southern NJ. For more information about Eastern Instrumentation / EI Technology, visit www.eicorp.com or call (410) 884-7303.

Vaunix Technology Corp., a manufacturer of USB controlled and powered test equipment, hired two new sales representatives, Sea-Port Technical Sales and Clarke and Severn Electronics, to handle customer relationships in WA/OR and Australia/New Zealand, respectively. Sea-Port Technical Sales offers a suite of RF, microwave and fiber-optic products: components, modules and sub-assemblies, design software, and manufacturing/engineering services. Vaunix representative Tom Raschko can be reached by phone at (425) 702-8300 or by email at Tom@seaporttech.com. Clarke and Severn Electronics is a distributor of electronic components and products. Vaunix representative David Haimovich can be reached by phone at +61-2-94821944 or by email at davidh@clarke.com.au.

W.L. Gore & Associates Inc. announced that Astron Electronics Inc., Gore's authorized sales representative in southern CA, will now sell Gore's high performance line of test and measurement RF/microwave cable assemblies, including GORE® PHASEFLEX®. To view Gore products on Astron's website, visit www.astron1.com or call (949) 379-7266.